登陆注册
18991500000019

第19章

She knowed all about them, fur Martha was con-siderable of a reader. Some of them was longer and some of them was shorter, them quests, but mostly, Martha says, they was fur a twelvemonth and a day. And then you are released from your vow and one of these here queens gives you a whack over the shoulder with a sword and says: "Arise, Sir Marmeluke, I dub you a night." And then it is legal fur you to go out and rescue people and reform them and spear them if they don't see things your way, and come between husband and wife when they row, and do a heap of good in the world. Well, they was other kind of quests too, but mostly you married somebody, or was dubbed a night, or found the party you was looking fur, in the end. And Martha had it all fixed up in her own mind I was in a quest to find my father. Fur, says she, he is purty certain to be a powerful rich man and more'n likely a earl.

The way I was found, Martha says, kind o' pints to the idea they was a earl mixed up in it somewhere. She had read a lot about earls, and knew their ways. Mebby my mother was a earl's daughter. Earl's daughters is the worst fur leaving you out in baskets, going by what Martha said.

It is a kind of a habit with them, fur they is awful proud people. But it was a lucky way to start life, from all she said, that basket way. There was Moses was left out that way, and when he growed up he was made a kind of a president of the hull human race, the same as Ruzevelt, and figgered out the twelve commandments. Martha would of give anything if she could of only been found in a basket like me, I could see that. But she wasn't. She had jest been left a orphan when her folks died. They wasn't even no hopes she had been changed at birth fur another one. But I seen down in under everything Martha kind o' thought mebby one of them nights might come a-prancing along and wed her in spite of herself, or she would be carried off, or something. She was a very romanceful kind of girl.

When I seen she had it figgered out I was in a quest fur some high-mucky-muck fur a dad, Ididn't tell her no different. I didn't take much stock in them earls and nights myself. So fur as I could see they was all furriners of one kind or another. But that thing of being into a quest kind of interested me, too.

"How would I know him if I was to run acrost him?" I asts her.

"You would feel an Intangible Something," she says, "drawing you toward him."I asts her what kind of a something. I make out from what she says it is some like these fellers that can find water with a piece of witch hazel switch.

You take a switch of it between your thumbs and point it up. Then you shut your eyes and walk backwards. When you get over where the water is the witch hazel stick twists around and points to the ground. You dig there and you get a good well. Nobody knows jest why that stick is drawed to the ground. It is like one of these little whirly-gig compasses is drawed to the north. It is the same, Martha says, if you is on a quest fur a father or a mother, only you have got to be worthy of that there quest, she says. The first time you meet the right one you are drawed jest like the witch hazel. That is the Intangible Something working on you, she says.

Martha had learnt a lot about that. The book that had fell in the crick was like that. She lent it to me.

Well, that all sounded kind of reasonable to me.

I seen that witch hazel work myself. Old Blindy Wolfe, whose eyes had been dead fur so many years they had turned plumb white, had that gift, and picked out all the places fur wells that was dug in our neighbourhood at home. And I makes up my mind I will watch out fur that feeling of being drawed wherever I goes after this. You can't tell what will come of them kind of things. So purty soon Martha has to milk the cow, and I goes along back to camp thinking about that quest and about what a purty girl she is, which we had set there talking so long it was nigh sundown and my clothes had dried onto me.

When I got over to camp I seen they must be something wrong. Looey was setting in the grass under the wagon looking kind of sour and kind of worried and watching the doctor. The doctor was jest inside the tent, and he was looking queer too, and not cheerful, which he was usually.

同类推荐
  • 练兵实纪

    练兵实纪

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • The Greatness of Cities

    The Greatness of Cities

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 九歌

    九歌

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • Lin McLean

    Lin McLean

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 大乘法界无差别论疏并序

    大乘法界无差别论疏并序

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 《朝歌行》

    《朝歌行》

    人皇元年,他母亲圆寂于九华山,父亲引天劫于西昆仑,灭三十六仙那一年,他一步一叩,跪上蜀山。人皇十年,谢宝树身负兵狱、幽炎,出藏剑山庄。到底是神遗弃了人,还是人遗弃了神?是信仰还是原则支配着这个世界?羽万其族,爱恨千年。神魔乱舞起长风,不灭色相误半生。
  • 诡异校园

    诡异校园

    这是看似普通的大学校园,但是离奇古怪的事情却频频发生。美丽可人的校花,潇洒倜傥的高富帅学霸,还有那一桩桩一件件叫人匪夷所思的探险经历……
  • 情歌

    情歌

    龙仁青,当代著名作家。1967年3月生于青海湖畔铁卜加草原1986年7月毕业于青海海南民族师范学校藏语言文学专业。先后从事广播、电视、报纸等媒体的新闻翻译(汉藏文)、记者、编辑、导演、制片等职,现供职于青海电视台影视部。
  • 刀锋凶猛

    刀锋凶猛

    在屈辱中壮烈了一把的杨速雷,用自己的生命换到的只是仇人的一根手指。他在死亡中重生了。这一世,他凭借自己前世的记忆,占尽先机,做药剂,得专利,开工厂,收人才,打江山,一步一步,将强大的敌人逼向绝境。试看杨速雷面对邪恶,用刀说话。
  • 一路尖叫一路飞

    一路尖叫一路飞

    青春成长爱情小说,讲述一代人的爱和痛,包含着哲理反思。曾在中华传奇连载,受到读者好评。
  • 100个恐怖故事

    100个恐怖故事

    城市的大街小巷,山野荒村古宅哪里有好奇心哪里就有想象力只有战胜对未知的恐惧,终成无畏!
  • EXO之此生挚爱

    EXO之此生挚爱

    她拥有美女,富二代,学霸等标签他一个万众瞩目的大明星他们相遇,在一起了。。却不知道以后的选择
  • 重生之天才萝莉不好追

    重生之天才萝莉不好追

    她是父母捧在手心的公主,老师同学心中的完美天才,跟她相处过的人都深觉得她是童话故事中美好的精灵,高贵优雅,却又妙趣横生;但只有他知道她不会是童话故事中自由快乐的精灵,而是堕落的天使,他们善行不足,无法上升到天堂,罪孽也未满盈而无法在地狱安生。“哥,她都来国都一年了你什么还没行动!”男主角的弟弟急的掀桌,而男主角只是面无表情的抬头平静地说道:“我国法律有规定结婚年龄,她明显还没到。”弟弟忍不住吼道:“你是山顶洞人吗,结婚有规定,但订婚没有啊!”且看世界上最不解风情的金牌律师遇上没有爱情意识的天才萝莉会碰撞出怎样的花火!作者有话要说:我胡汉三又回来了,现在每天确定更新时间:12:00
  • 治安管理与执法监督

    治安管理与执法监督

    治安管理违法行为在我们日常生活中很常见,这些行为严重扰乱了社会秩序与公共安全。而事实上,治安管理违法行为的产生很大程度上是因为老百姓不懂法。为了让老百姓知晓哪些行为是治安违法行为,本书以浅显生动的语言,精选大量老百姓生活中常见的典型案例,系统讲解日常生活中常见的各种治安违法行为。目的在于提高老百姓的守法意识,避免违法行为,并能利用《治安管理处罚法》保护自己的权益。
  • 百香诗选

    百香诗选

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。